Pull mechanism for railway cars



C. V. ROTE PULL MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARS Filed Jul 27, 1920 4sheets-sheet J Apr. 10, 1923.

C. V. ROTE PULL MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARS Filed July 27, 1920 4sheets-sheet 2 Apr. 10; 1923'. A

C. V. ROTE,

PULL MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARS Filed July 2?, 1920 4 sheets-sheet 3Apr. 10-, 1923.

C. V; ROTE PULL MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARS sheets-sheet 4 Filed July2'7, l920 Patented Apr. 10, 1923.

CHARLES v; RO'IE, LANCASTER, PENNsYLvAniA, AssiGNoR or oNE-itALE 'ro'E;w.

BROWN, or LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA. M

PULL MECHANISM Eon RAILWAY cans. I

Application filed. July 27,

T0 alZ whom it may] concern:

Be it known'that 1, CHARLES V. Born, a citizen of the vUnited States,residing at Lancaster, in the county of Lancaster and State ofPennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in PullMechanisms for Railway Cars, of which the following is a specification.

The present "invention relates to ii'npro-vements in pull mechanisms forrailway cars and has for its object to provide means by which a train ofcars may be started more smoothly and with less jar, than can be donewith the draft devices commonlyfemployed. v

According to the present invention means are provided whereby a pull or.draft exerted on the coupler at the'front end of the forward car of atrain will be immediately transferred to the second car. Bythisarrangement whenstarting a train the pull or draft exerted by theengine on the forward car will be transmitted, first, to the carimmediately in rear of the car to which the coupler receiving theinitial pull is attached so that the second car will be started first.

In the accompanying drawings twoembodiments of the invention areillustrated, the several views being largely diagrammatic and omitting anumber of parts. which are in common 'use in railway draft appliances.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a plan view of one end of a railway car,having an embodiment of the invention applied thereto;

Figure 1 is a similar view of the other end port-ion of the car;

Figures 2 and 2 are, respectively. side elevations of parts shown inFgures 1 and 1 Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view substantially onthe line of Figure 2 Figured is a view substantially on the line 4+4 ofFigure 1*, on an enlarged scale; Figure 5 is a plan of a portionof'another embodiment of the invention;

Figure 6 is a elevation of parts shown in Figure 5; g

Figure 7 is a sectional view substantially on the line 7-7 of Figure 5,on an enlarged scale. a In the drawings the frame of the car 1sdiagrammatically illustrated as comprising of the ca" 1920. Serial No.399,307.

longitudinal side members l, 1 end sills 2,

irons at, it that extend throughout'the'length of the car andareconnected by atop plate or member 5, which for clearness ofillustration-of other parts, hereinafter referred to, is. removed in allof; the figures". except Figure3. c :c I

The side members 4,4", ofthe central girder of the car frame are shownas being of greater height or depth along the mid section ofthe car thanat the ends thereof and within-the channels formed on the outer surfacesof said members are arranged the pull bars that will be hereinafter.more particularly described.

Referring particularly to Figuressl to 14: inclusive, 6, 6, designatethe draft couplers i, which may beat 'any suitable type and areattached, in the ordinary man ner,to'-draw bars 7, 7 which extendthrough suitable guides on the end frame members 2, 2. With said-"drawbar cooperates a yielding or spring mechanism such 'as "commonly usedandwhich is conventionally illustrated at 8, in Figure 2 c 1 Each of thecouplers, 6, 6'], is connectedwith a set of draft appliances which areinterconnected so that there may be a relative movement between them inthe direction of'the length of the car, In the'embodiment of theinvention shown intFigures 1 -to 4, each set of draft'appliancesincludes two longitudinally extending bars "9, 9, which are arranged onopposite sides of the central longitudinal girder, in the channelsformed thereby, and transverse members 1O. 10. The members 10,10,'eXtendthrough nected by reach rods 13. 13, with barsl i,

l tflthat extend through suitable slots in suitable slotsformed inthe'wal1s4,=4', of i c the girder walls 4. As shown, the rods 13, 13,have loops or elongated eyes formed in the ends thereof remote from thecouplers and through these extend pins or studs. 15, 15, on the crossbars, 14, 14.

Rods 16, 16, respectively, connect the pins or studs 15, 15, with levers17, 17, which that extends through a slot 23, 23", in the longitudinaldraft member 9, 9. Beyond the cross bars 14, 14, each longitudinal draftbar 9, 9, is provided with a pin or abutment 24, 24, and means areprovided, whereby movement of the cross bars 14,14, may be transmittedto said draft bars through said pins r abutments. In theembodiment ofthe invention illustrated in Figures 1 to 4 this connecting meanscomprises a slide 26, 26, adapted to be reciprocated through openings inthe walls of the car frame girder. One edge of each of said slides isparallel throughout its length with the adjacent crossbar 14, 14, whilein the opposite edge are formed two recesses 25, The sides of saidrecesses 25, are inclined or camshape and when the slide is moved, in,one direction the solid portions .thereof will completely till thespace be tween the adjacent cross bars 14, 14, and the abutments orstuds 24, 24, on the draft bars 9, 9.

For moving each of said slides levers 2T, 27, are fulcrumed on the bars14, 14, and the short arm of each thereof extends intoa slot or openingin the adjacent slide. Movement of the levers 27, 27 ,'is normallylimited by pins 28, 28', extending upward from levers 29, 29, which arefulcrumed on brackvets 30, projecting from the central girder of the carframe, and normally extend upward into the path of the levers 27, 27'.In order to permit the slides tobe shifted from either side of the car,members of each pair of the levers 29, 29, are connected at their innerends, as shown in Figure 3, so that movement of either lever to withdrawits pin 28, from' the path of movement of the lever 27, 27 will betransmitted to effect a corresponding movement of the other lever andits stop pin.

The two sets of draft members, 9, 10, and 9', 10, are connected bylinks-30, which extend from the pins or studs 12, to the pins or studs12, so that when either bar 10, 10. is

moved a corresponding movement will be bars.

directly transmitted to the other of said The operation of theembodiment of the invention hereinbefore described may be briefly statedas follows:

The parts being in the relative positions shown in Figures 1 to 2 a pullupon the coupler 6 will be transmitted to the cross bar 14, through thelinks 13 and such bar will be moved in the slots in the frame girdertoward the left in Figure 1. This movement will not be directlytransmitted tothe bars 9 because the notches 25 of the slide 26 areopposite the pins 24 and the slide can move with the bar 14 withoutdirectly moving the bars 9. The pull exerted on the rods 16 by suchmovement of the cross bar 14 will operate to-expand the toggle 20 andmove the cross bar 10 relative to the longitudinal draft bars 9, theconnections 12 moving'in' the slots 11. As the bars 10, 10, are directlyconnected by the links 30 such movement will be immediately transferredto the bar 10. The connections 12' being at theends of the slots 11toward the coupler 6, and theislide 26 being interposed between thecrossbar 14' and the studs or abutments 24', movement of the bar 10 willbe directly communicated to the bars 9,94, and, through the rods 13, tothe coupler 6, and thus to the next car which is coupled to the-coupler6.

i The second car will, therefore, be started before the first car and"caused to exert a pushing action on the forward car. By thisarrangement the coupling and yielding draft devices between thelocomotive and first car will not be subjected to the direct sudden pullwhich so frequently, in starting trains, acts to disconnect themfrom'the car.

It will be seen that as the parts are moved, as above described, intransmitting pull from the coupler 6 direct to the coupler 6 the toggles20, 20 will be, respectively, expanded and contracted, and suchoperation will be reversed in case'the parts are so adjusted that theinitial pull will come upon the coupler 6'. I

By interposing a toggle between each draft coupling and the transversebar 10, 10 there is provided a draft rigging, the effective length ofwhich is variable; and the parts are so proportioned that when two carsare coupled together the variation in the etfectivelengths of the draftriggings will be such that the second car will be started in advance ofthe forward car to a conplot of which thedraft is difectly applied.

If it is desired to start the car in the opposite direction, the slides26, 26','will'be actuated to reverse the relations thereof to pull onthe coupler 6 will operateto expand the toggle 20 and exert a'pulldirectly through the draft-bars 9 to the coupler 6at rods or links 13with transverse draft mem-.

ber 31 which, through rods 82 is connected with outwardly extendingprojections 33 on one member of a toggle 34;. The ends of the members ofthe toggle 34 are connected to transverse members 35, 36', theconnection between the bar 35 and the toggle being provided pins thatextend through slots 37 in the bars 9. Said bars are of such length thatthey overlap the bars 9 leading from the opposite end of the car, as inFigure 1*.

' It will be understood that the parts illustrated in Figures 5 and 6and above described are duplicated at the other end of the car, thecross member 36 and a portion of the toggle 34 being only illustrated.Theicross members 86, 36 extend through slots 40, 4C0

formed in the side walls of the central gir der of the car frame.

In this embodiment of the inventionthe cross bar 31 is shown as made ofangle iron and transversely across the space formed between its top andbottom members extend pins 42 against which the slide 26 bears. As inthe embodiment of the invention first described the longitudinal bars 9are provided at their free ends with pins 24; with which cooperate thenotches 25' in the slide 26 as before described. The slide isreciprocated by levers43, so that it will occupy either the positionshown in Figure 5 or will extend continuously across the space betweenthe pins 42, 24.

The operation of the embodiment illustrated in Figures 5 to 7 being thesame as that illustrated in Figures 1 to 4 that has been described indetail is not repeated here.

It will be evident that the invention may be embodied in various formsof mechanism differing from those selected for purposes of illustrationand that the accompanying illustrations are largely diagrammatic. It isnot desired, therefore, to limit the invention, in its broader aspects,to the specific arrangements of parts that are shown in the drawings.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed and desired to besecured by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a railway car provided with a coupler at eachend, of two sets of draft devices carried by the car and each comprisingmembers extending respectively longitudinally and transversely of thecar and connected together by means permitting relative movement betweenthem in the direction of the length of thecar, such connection includingatoggle having its members respectively connected with the transverseand longitudinal members of each I said set, the connection betweenthetoggles and longitudinal members permitting rela-. tive movementbetween them in the direction of the length of the car, each of saidsets being movable as a unit longitudinally of the car, means connectingthe toggle of each said set with the adjacent coupler, a rigid con 1nection between the transverse members of the two sets, and adjustablemeans for preventing relative movement between the members of either ofsaid sets longitudinally of the car. 7 p

2. The combination with a railway car frame, having a draft coupler ateach end, of two toggles each having both members pivotally connected tothe car frame, the connection between each of said members and the framebeing movable in the direction of the length of the frame, a rigidconnection between adjacent members of the toggles, a connection betweeneach toggle and the adj acent coupler, and adjustable meansfor pmventing relative movement between one of the-members of each toggle andthe frame.

3. The combination with a railway car frame, having a draft couplerat'each end, of two toggles each having both members pivotally connectedto the car frame, the connection between each of saidmembers and theframe being movable in the direction of the length of the frame, a rigidconnection between adjacent members of the toggles, a connection betweeneach toggle and the adjacent coupler, and a slide adjustabletransversely of the frame for preventing relative movement between oneof the members of each toggle and the frame.

4. The combination with a railway can frame, having a draft coupler ateach end, of two toggles each having both members pivotally connected tothe car frame, the connection between each of said members and the framebeing movable in the direction of the length of the frame, a rigidconnection between adjacent members of the toggles, a connection betweeneach toggle and the adjacent coupler, an adjustable device forpreventing relative movement between one ofthe members of each toggleand the frame, and a plurality of levers projecting laterally from bothsides of the frame, each lever being adapted to control operation of twoof said devices, for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

CHARLES V. ROTE.

